


Pilot

by scullywolf



Series: TXF: Scenes in Between [1]
Category: The X-Files
Genre: Gen, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-14
Updated: 2015-07-14
Packaged: 2018-04-09 07:50:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4340072
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scullywolf/pseuds/scullywolf
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's the end of Dana Scully's first full day in her new assignment, and already she's seen things she's at a loss to explain.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Pilot

_“Did you figure out what that little thing up Ray Soames’s nose is yet?”  
“No. And I’m not losing any sleep over it. Good night.”_

That was a lie, of course. That she wasn’t dead on her feet after the early flight, the long drive, the autopsy that hadn’t even  _begun_  until nearly 11pm, that she was still wide awake despite having gone over 24 hours without sleep, all of this was proof enough of her lie. Even so, she couldn’t imagine trying to sleep anytime soon, as the questions and theories and hypotheses chased each other around and around in her head. She stared at the x-ray again as if she might, by sheer force of will, be able to make the answer appear to her.

The implant. She had never seen anything like it.

It  _could_  still be an ape, some part of her kept insisting. A zoo animal, dead under suspicious circumstances, hidden in the cemetery for reasons completely unrelated to the case. The implant could be an experimental tracking device of some sort, a means of cataloging the animal.

But why in the nose? That still made no sense. Never mind that the nearest zoo was over forty miles away.

Sighing, she picked up the tape recorder and turned back to her computer, grabbing her glasses from the bed and sliding them on. With a click to restart the tape, she resumed her transcription.

> _“...four millimeters in diameter and twenty-seven millimeters in length. Object is cylindrical in design with small spheres on either end. No identifying marks, stamps or branding were found. The potential purpose of this implant is unknown.”_

The recorder clicked as the tape came to its end. Scully read back over her notes with a small shake of her head, then saved her data and shut down the computer. She had started this case with such confidence, certain that with proper investigative work and attention to detail, they would be able to figure out what was happening to these kids. Now, though… now she was not so sure. She sat up straight to stretch her back.

Tomorrow. In the morning, they would courier the tissue and bone marrow samples to Quantico for more detailed analysis. If it  _was_  an ape, they should have confirmation within the week. If not, well, maybe there would be some evidence of a genetic disorder or some other explanation for the physiological abnormalities of the corpse.

They also had an appointment to meet with Ray Soames’s former psychiatrist, Dr. Glass. With any luck, he might be able to shed some light as to why Soames had confessed to two murders when there was no evidence to indicate he’d committed them. Maybe he was covering for someone. Maybe he had told Dr. Glass something that would help lead them to the real killer.

With another sigh, Scully stood from the bed before collecting the scattered papers, removing the x-rays from the bedside lamps, and packing up her computer. She might not be able to sleep for a while yet, but she could at least put the case to bed for the night.


End file.
